Columbus City Council last night approved a series of rules to regulate car services like Uber and Lyft. Council voted to require drivers to have proof of vehicle ownership, background checks and one million dollars worth of insurance.

A spokeswoman for Lyft applauds Council’s efforts to regulate the service, but says certain elements of the ordinance do not work with their peer-to-peer model. She urged Council to revisit the measure.

Five years after a bus crash that killed several Bluffton University baseball team players, new federal legislation will increase safety on motor coaches.

John Betts said, â€œwe had no plans on going anywhere until this was accomplished.” Betts’ son, David, was one of five Bluffton University baseball team players who died in a bus crash in March 2007. That accident was the impetus for the new regulations.

â€œWe are extremely happy that we can fulfill our promise to David and the Bluffton University boys and all those families across the country who have lost loved ones,” he said.

Betts worked with U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown who drafted the measure as part of the highway bill.

The law requires new buses to have seat belts, anti-ejection glazed windows, and roofs able to withstand rollovers among other safety features.

â€œThis is not really high-tech stuff. Weâ€™re not talking about air bags that are popping out of windows and that kind of stuff, weâ€™re talking about seat belts, and things that are just simple and straightforward.” – John Betts, son died in Bluffton bus crash

President of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety, Jacqueline Gillan, said bus manufacturers provide seat belts, but as options.

â€œWhat this legislation does is it makes it standard equipment because we donâ€™t think what people are riding on motor coaches just as when youâ€™re riding in your car that a seat belt should be optionalâ€¦it ought to be standard equipment. And it ought to be available to every passenger on every ride, in every seat.â€

While the legislation does not require older buses to retro-fit to meet the new requirements, advocates hope carriers will install safety equipment in older buses once consumers show a preference for it.

]]>http://wosu.org/2012/news/2012/06/29/highway-bill-adds-motorcoach-laws-spurred-by-bluffton-bus-crash/feed/0Bluffton University,Bluffton University Baseball,bus,bus crash,Highway Bill,regulationsFive years after a bus crash that killed several Bluffton University baseball team players, new federal legislation will increase safety on motor coaches.Five years after a bus crash that killed several Bluffton University baseball team players, new federal legislation will increase safety on motor coaches.WOSU Newsno1:16Exotic Animal Regulations Clear Ohio Legislaturehttp://wosu.org/2012/news/2012/05/23/exotic-animal-regulations-clear-the-ohio-house/
http://wosu.org/2012/news/2012/05/23/exotic-animal-regulations-clear-the-ohio-house/#commentsWed, 23 May 2012 11:20:21 +0000The Associated Presshttp://wosu.org/2012/news/?p=28879

Proposed regulations on exotic animals in Ohio are now headed to the governor for his signature.

Proposed regulations on exotic animals in Ohio are now headed to the governor for his signature.

Efforts to strengthen the state’s law took on new urgency in October, when a suicidal owner released dozens of exotic animals from his farm near Zanesville in eastern Ohio.

The Ohio House passed the measure on an 87-9 vote Tuesday. And the Senate then agreed to the House’s changes. Those revisions included lower permit fees and liability insurance requirements than the version that state senators passed last month.

The measure would ban new ownership of exotic animals, while allowing current owners to keep their pets by obtaining a new state-issued permit by 2014 and adhere to strict new caretaking standards.

Owners would be required to post signs alerting people to dangerous animals on the property.

The two-phase plan proposes virtually de-regulating all 14 Ohio public universities. Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Jim Petro said universities are bogged down with duplicate and out-of-date mandates that cost them time and money.

“If universities can operate more nimbly, more flexibly with more freedom of action and recognizing that they are responsible managers and fiduciaries who are providing the governance and oversight. Then I think they will save money, they will have more opportunity to enact policies and procedures that will allow them to partner with businesses whether it be through research or commercialization,” Petro said.

Some of the proposed mandate relief would include ability to set term lengths for board officers, create different tuition and fees for space and facility reasons and eliminate enrollment caps.

Public universities will have the opportunity to receive additional mandate relief by becoming a so-called Enterprise University. As part of an agreement with the Board of Regents, the institution would aspire to reach goals set by the regents.

For schools looking to receive the most autonomy, they would be required to meet certain benchmarks including a five-year graduation rate of 75 percent and first and second year retention rates of 85 percent. They also would be required to give up part of their state money for a new elite scholarship program. These schools in turn would have the right to sell real estate without General Assembly approval and have more leeway on construction projects, among other regulation breaks.

Ann Brennan is chairman of the board from the University of Akron. She said itâ€™s â€œmaybeâ€ an excellent idea.

“Up until now weâ€™ve been used to being a government entity and this is going to be a big change. We need to study it at the University of Akron to see how we fit in the metrics that are being proposed. So I donâ€™t know what weâ€™re going to do,” Brennan said.

Petro said the plan would not make universities less transparent â€¦ although it does allow for executive sessions with specified internal auditors and for matters dealing with proprietary information.

The General Assembly has to approve the plans. If it passes, it would take effect next July.

]]>http://wosu.org/2012/news/2011/08/11/board-of-regents-rolls-out-university-de-reg-plan/feed/0Ohio Board of Regents,regulations,universitiesOhio Board of Regents Chancellor Jim Petro today rolled out a plan to make the stateâ€™s public universities more autonomous that would also push them to become more innovative.Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Jim Petro today rolled out a plan to make the stateâ€™s public universities more autonomous that would also push them to become more innovative.WOSU Newsno2:03Regulatory Burdens – Two Firms Try to Copehttp://wosu.org/2012/news/2011/01/31/regulatory-burdens-two-firms-try-to-cope/
http://wosu.org/2012/news/2011/01/31/regulatory-burdens-two-firms-try-to-cope/#commentsMon, 31 Jan 2011 00:00:00 +0000Debbie Holmeshttp://wosu.org/2012/news/2011/01/31/regulatory-burdens-two-firms-try-to-cope/Political leaders in Ohio and across the country complain that government regulations are preventing many businesses from expanding. Ohio Governor John Kasich says Ohio has one of the toughest business environments.

]]>Political leaders in Ohio and across the country complain that government regulations are preventing many businesses from expanding. Ohio Governor John Kasich says Ohio has one of the toughest business environments.

In the worst economy since the Great Depression, 34 year old John Clancy started an auto repair business in 2009. German Autowerks on the West Side services German made vehicles. Clancy wanted to start his business in Hilliard but zoning restrictions blocked him, so he came to Columbus. Clancy says business has grown by 30%. He employs 3 full-time workers and he wants to expand to another location if he can find the money to do that.

“It seems that the restrictions that are put on available funds currently, there are so many hurdles that being a small business owner I almost wanted to give up and choose to make it in other directions,” said Clancy.

After using credit cards and other sources of money Clancy obtained a $25,000 line of credit from the Small Business Administration. It took 2 months to secure. Clancy says on a daily basis he does not feel hindered by regulations. He does have certification from the Environmental Protection Agency to handle Freon, a cooling fluid in air conditioning. In his garage three 30 gallon containers store engine oil and a separate container holds coolant fluid.

“And it’s to collect all the used engine oil which will stay in this hopper and it has an air pressure regulator ,” explained Clancy.

Clancy contracts with an outside company to haul away the waste. He also recycles metal auto parts like catalytic converters, but that’s not a government requirement. Ohio Governor John Kasich and some other political leaders contend too many government regulations stifle business growth.

“And we’re having trouble now competing, we’re losing businesses. We’ve got to become more competitive if we’re going to help the people get work,” said Kasich.

Kasich wants to see more small businesses enjoy success across the state. Internet security firm, Jacadis, based in Columbus is one small business experiencing growth. Company president, Doug Davidson started the company 11 years ago.

“We wake up in the morning and we think about how to protect data and we go to bed at night thinking about how to protect data and there’s nothing else in between,” said Davidson.

The Internet security firm will soon add its 7th full-time employee and a second part-time worker. Davidson says the business has been able to grow by double digits over the last 3 years. He explains that changing government regulations in securing private data have brought challenges.

“We provide services in the data and privacy world to help companies be compliant with government regulations, so it’s difficult to understand exactly what our customers’ need. On the same token it’s difficult as a business to work with government regulations that never seem to have a final concrete rule,” said Davidson.

President Obama has ordered government agencies to review what business regulations can be removed. He pointed out in his State of the Union Address that a major reorganization hasn’t happened since the days of black and white T.V.’s.

“There are 12 different agencies that deal with exports. There are at least 5 different agencies that deal with housing policy. Then there’s my favorite example: The Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they’re in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them when they’re in saltwater,” said President Obama.

Professor Scott Shane of the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University is skeptical an overview will lead to much change.

“The problem is not that the federal agencies are unaware of the impact that the regulations have on small business. It’s that they’re unwilling to give up the regulation even though it puts a heavy burden on small businesses,” said Shane.

Shane explains that larger businesses often have an expert who deals specifically with government compliance. Shane adds that the new health care law and the banking reform bill both will add more regulations to businesses.

“We’ve seen in the past couple of years a spike up in the cost per employee for small businesses to adhere to federal regulations,” added Shane.

Shane says those costs can lead to fewer employees hired. He says simpler, effective laws could be written to limit new regulations.

]]>http://wosu.org/2012/news/2011/01/31/regulatory-burdens-two-firms-try-to-cope/feed/0business,government,regulationsPolitical leaders in Ohio and across the country complain that government regulations are preventing many businesses from expanding. Ohio Governor John Kasich says Ohio has one of the toughest business environments.Political leaders in Ohio and across the country complain that government regulations are preventing many businesses from expanding. Ohio Governor John Kasich says Ohio has one of the toughest business environments.WOSU Newsno4:17